Badminton: Testing time for top player

By TERRY MADDAFORD

It was not a great day for New Zealand No 1 Geoff Bellingham at the North Harbour International yesterday.

He lost the men's singles final and later, with women's No 1 Rhona Robertson, the mixed doubles final.

Then, when he was called for a drugs test, he was left waiting around for ages as he struggled to produce the required sample.

But, as he admitted, the tournament was just what he had needed to continue his world championship build-up.

"I struggled a bit today," Bellingham said after losing a four-set singles final to Australian Nathan Malpass.

It was a reversal of last week's Counties Manukau tournament result in which Bellingham needed only 17 minutes to win.

"I played like the Blues did last night," he said, in reference to the woeful Super 12 franchise's effort at Eden Park.

Bellingham felt that his 7-2, 8-6, 7-1 semifinal win over former No 1 Nick Hall on Saturday had been more important than the final.

That victory confirmed Bellingham's singles standing and should book him the singles spot in the New Zealand team for the world championships.

His good early-season form can be put down to a decent break from badminton over the summer and a fairly rigorous fitness regime.

"I've done a lot of running, played some tennis and touch, and been to the gym," he said.

"I put on a bit of weight, which was mainly muscle, and I've had to work hard to lose about 6kg to get back to my best playing weight."

Robertson confirmed her undoubted class with her repeat win over top-seeded Australian Rayoni Head in four sets in yesterday's women's singles final.

She also combined with new international Sara Runesten-Petersen to take the women's doubles before joining Bellingham in the mixed final, in which they crashed in straight sets - 3-7, 2-7, 1-7 - to Hall and Runesten-Petersen.

While Bellingham and Robertson will be obvious choices for the singles spots at the world championships in Seville, Spain, national coach Graeme Robson said he would take it tie by tie.

"It depends a little on who we are playing," Robson said. "It's a day-by-day thing.

"I have to be mindful of the workload, especially for Geoff and Rhona. Nick can only get better after coming back from a year off. He has gone better than I thought he would at this stage."

Robson said the two international tournaments - NZ Badminton contributed to the cost of bringing 11 Australians to Auckland - had been worthwhile.

But he wished he had been able to get more international competition for the players who will leave in two weeks to link with others touring Europe.

"We could have sent some players over there, but we felt it was better to do it this way so I could keep an eye on how things were going."